News

The capture of Laurent Nkunda's rebels by Congolese immigration officers is said to have provoked the closing of the border with Uganda, in Bunagana, by Congolese authorities said the local press. There had been reports that the army had also arrested several border agents, who were then released, last week during last week's clashes.

No-one appears to have survived a plane crash in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, the plane's operator says. The Beechcraft plane was carrying 15 passengers and two crew members when it crashed into a mountain near Bukavu, said the operator, Air Serv.

DR Congo's TP Mazembe have inflicted a heavy 3-0 defeat on visiting Enyimba of Nigeria in Group B of the African Champions League. Defeat for the Lubumbashi side would have left them unable to make it through to the last four, but they kept the group wide open with a scintillating display.

Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo's restive North Kivu province is said to be quiet Friday after the worst outbreak of violence there in months. As VOA Correspondent Alisha Ryu reports from our East Africa Bureau in Nairobi, U.N. officials are working to maintain a fragile cease-fire signed between the government in Congo Kinshasa and Tutsi rebels.

Prosecutors have asked for the death penalty in the trial of the alleged killers of Kinshasa Member of Parliament Daniel Botheti. The former vice-president of the provincial assembly of Kinshasa was gunned down by armed men on July 6, 2008 as he was returning from a party.

On 27 August 2008, the French government and the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) signed an agreement for one million euros for the urban, municipal and local elections, planned for 2009. This contribution is on top of those received from the UNDP, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Italy and the European Commission.

Zambian leader Levy Mwanawasa has died in a Paris hospital after suffering a stroke in June. He was 59. Vice-President Rupiah Banda, who is expected to take over as acting leader, made the announcement on state TV.

The 28th summit of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) concluded here Sunday with the launch of the Free Trade Area (FTA). The review of the political situation in the region and the launch of FTA dominated the agenda of the two-day summit.

South African President Thabo Mbeki said Wednesday he remains hopeful a power-sharing agreement between Zimbabwe's long-ruling ZANU-PF and the Movement for Democratic Change can be reached soon despite indications the talks are virtually deadlocked, but developments on the ground in the country threatened the crisis resolution process.